Sacred Heart Catholic School in Rancho Cucamonga to move proposed cell tower after objections from parents

RANCHO CUCAMONGA - Sacred Heart Catholic Church has decided to move the proposed location of a cellphone tower to the northern part of its parking lot after parents opposed placing it on school grounds.

Sacred Heart parents have complained they were not notified of the project until after permits had been approved and they feared that children could be harmed by radiation from the tower.

Diocese of San Bernardino officials maintain the cell tower would not harm anyone, and the decision to move the proposed location was in part an effort to defuse community opposition to the project, Diocese spokesman John Andrews said.

"This does not mean we've changed our position on health impacts," Andrews said.

"What it means is that the leadership of the parish obviously felt they needed to be responsive to their people and if there's a way to alleviate that, then that issue should be pursued. In the last year, the school also started to develop plans for expansion and developed a footprint for where the school might expand. The original location of the tower is where they might want to expand the school."

Chito Alcantara expressed opposition to the original location of the tower near the school at 12704 Foothill Blvd.

"If it's far away from the school, compared to the original part of the school they wanted to put it, it should be good progress for us parents," Alcantara said.

"At least, they're doing something."

An earlier, unapproved plan would have placed the tower in the northernmost tip of the property above the parking lot and north of school grounds.

City requirements led the church to decide to move the tower to its present proposed location, Andrews said.

The setback requirements are related more to the city's aesthetic policy direction - not to radiation levels, said Tabe Van der Zwaag, a city planner who was involved in the process related to the tower project.

The requirements may be superseded if the project applicant "proves there is not a better location that meets coverage requirements" and that the tower is able to serve more than one provider, Van der Zwaag said.

Andrews said radiation emission from the tower is projected to be one-tenth of the level permitted by the Federal Communications Commission.

Some said they would consider removing their children from the school if the parish moved forward with the tower project at the originally approved location on the school grounds.